Thursday, December 31, 2009

Unfortunately the 2000-2009 retrospective is still not yet finished! It will hopefully feature in the early entries of 2010. Apologies for the delay.

I'm about to whip out the door and catch a plane to Sydney where I will be for the next few days.

I hope you all have a marvellous New Year's and that 2010 itself finds you happy and healthy.

Thanks again for another year of fun and frivolity. Memories of late-night live blogging with fellow fans and friends will stay with me for a very long while. I can't wait to see what the bevvy of big competitions in 2010 will bring us to celebrate. I hope I can keep informing and entertaining you at a high standard, whatever the weather.

Best wishes from AGB Central! I couldn't do this without you guys (well, I could, but it would be six hundred times less enjoyable)!

Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Thanks to everyone who sent votes in, especially the gym parents who got whole families on board to vote for their nominated daughters. It was very sweet (and surprising!) to hear from so many of you. This was yet another exciting year in gymnastics with ups and downs across the male and female disciplines.

But let's have a little less conversation and a little more action! Congratulations to...

Sunday, December 27, 2009

Just wanted to wish rising star Larrissa Miller a speedy recovery after what I've been told was a very recent foot surgery.

Hope to see you back out there, strutting yer stuff, very soon!

Two thumbs up:

d(^_^)b

I also hope that you all had enjoyable Christmasses. I know I did! My laptop now sits pretty on a little stable table which makes sitting on the bed and typing a MUCH more enjoyable experience!

You can check out photos from Waverley Gymnastics' Coaches Christmas Break-up at their homepage here. Looks like a lot of fun was had by all.

It's still not too late to get your votes in for the 2009 Australian Gymnastics Blog Awards! (And I'll say at this point - it's extremely flattering that some people are nominating the blog itself for the Simon Reeve Gymnastics Reporting Award but I don't make a habit of nominating myself, and I don't accept write-in votes. I appreciate the sentiment greatly, though!)

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

I might not surface for the next two days or so, but sometime between Boxing Day and New Year's Eve, I hope to post my decade retrospective post and the winners of the 2009 Australian Gymnastics Blog Awards (keep those votes coming in!)

I wish you all a safe and happy Christmas wherever you are around the world. Thanks for sticking with me for another year and helping the good word of Aussie gymnastics spread. It's nice to know my rantings are entertaining to more than just myself. Hope to catch up again in the next few days.

Monday, December 14, 2009

To all gymnastics fans in Australia, best wishes for a great Christmas and New Year.

Gymnastics Australia worked hard in 2009 to engage its members and gymnastics fans in general by providing a website with the most up to date news, photos and modern communication tools such as “twitter”.

There is more to come in 2010 so we invite you to stay connected to GA because we value your support and interest in our athletes and our great sport.

Please note that the GA e-News will take a short break over Christmas and return in the New Year. In the interim, the web site will continue to keep you up to date with all the latest news.

Have a great Christmas and New Year.

Ohhhh snap.

I'm standing right here, ya know.

Can't we all just co-exist? Or at least... can't I squishy in the middle segment of the "GA" and "AGB" Venn diagram and work among you guys for once? Even if it's for free? I don't take up much space.

Sunday, December 13, 2009

I went to, of all things, A PETER COMBE CONCERT (for over 18's no less) and it turned into a late one. Top night, though. Crudely-assembled newspaper hat and all. Don't think I'll be seeing trendily-dressed twentysomethings chanting "TOFF-EE APP-LE! TOFF-EE APP-LE!" for an encore at any other gig anytime soon...

So, yes, Toyota Cup.

Great results for the Aussies over in Japan. Larrissa won bronze on uneven bars, and Prashanth scored silver on pommel. Onya, Rissa, for medalling in just your second big international competition!

Winners are grinners!

Edit: Australia goes 3 for 3! On Day 2, Philippe Rizzo managed a bronze on high bar (apparently he had a "stumble" on his dismount)! Hurrah hurrah hurrah for all.

Friday, December 11, 2009

This weekend sees two (count them!) big gym events for members of Team Australia.

The Toyota Cup in Japan will test Larrissa Miller, Phil Rizzo and Prashanth Sellathurai's prowess while Josh Jefferis and Sam Simpson are heading to the Valeri Liukin Invitational at the prestigious WOGA gym in Texas.

Good luck to all our representatives! Come home safely (and with some silverware!)

Monday, December 7, 2009

Say what you will about her diction (and stuff), she's FREAKING ADORABLE and deserves her own two-minute ranty segment on a quirky undergraduate radio station where everyone has a hilarious on-air pseudonynm like "Doctor Wibbles" or "The Snot".

Also, just in regard to the Toyota Cup, I got in touch with GA a week or so ago. I asked about live streaming and they said they'd contact the Japanese Gymnastics Association about it and then get back to me. They did! But it's bad news: JGA confirmed there will be NO live web streaming of the event.

Sunday, December 6, 2009

Yes, it's that time again (unfortunately I've left it a few days late!) to nominate for your favourite moments, media nuggets, movers and shakers of the year. You will notice a couple of categories have changed since last year.

The AGBys are back, baby!

Here are the rules again for those of you playing at home:

****You may nominate one favourite in each category, and email your nominations to ozgymblog@gmail.com by December 29th with "Awards 2009" as your subject header. You may vote anonymously but please only vote for ONE nominee in each category (choosing only from the names in that category, no open-ended "other" responses will be accepted) and only vote once. Your details will not be passed on to any correspondents or used for advertising purposes. It's just easier than commenting, really. Results will be tabulated throughout this month and posted on the 30th of December. Get your votes in and show your gym community some love!****

Friday, December 4, 2009

According to The West newspaper today, Dasha Joura will NOT be travelling with her Dad to Queensland. She will stay in WA to continue her university studies. She is still making up her mind about a return to gymnastics once her ankle gets the all-clear from surgeons.

I am awaiting a scan of the article. Meanwhile (thanks Misty), read the online version here.

Thursday, December 3, 2009

Please Note that Lauren Mitchell has been withdrawn from this event due to a hand injury sustained in training. Lauren was training on vault and tripped, breaking her fall with her right hand. She has sustained a fracture to the metacarpal in her right wrist. The injury will keep Lauren grounded for the next four weeks, providing her with plenty of time to work on aerial and non upper body weight bearing training on beam.

Get Well Soon, Loz!

Larrissa Miller will compete at the event without her London counterpart. Also competing will be Philippe Rizzo and Prashanth Sellathurai.